UC Launches Special Postgraduate Earthquake Engineering Courses To Help In The Rebuild
January 29, 2013
To help with the Christchurch rebuild, the University of Canterbury (UC) will offer specialised training in earthquake
engineering as postgraduate degrees starting next month.
UC has long been recognised as a leading institution in engineering. The introduction of the masters and PhD earthquake
engineering courses has been welcomed by John Hare, the president of the Structural Engineering Society of New Zealand.
``Over the years UC has consistently produced graduates with a great grounding in seismic engineering. Those who have
gone on to complete post-graduate studies have been able to further advance their knowledge in key areas,’’ Hare said
today.
``These engineers have stood out, not just in New Zealand, but on the world stage. We have enjoyed a long term
relationship with UC and it is no coincidence that the majority of our engineers and leaders are UC graduates.
``The need for good earthquake engineers is increasing in the rebuild and UC’s role in training new graduates or
up-skilling immigrant engineers will be a significant factor in the long term success of the recovery,’’ said Hare, who
is a senior director of Holmes Consulting Group , the largest specialist structural engineering consultancy in New
Zealand.
The UC earthquake engineering courses and research projects are being delivered in high intensity, short duration,
block-mode in order to cater for both full-time students and engineers in industry wishing to up-skill.
The courses will cover topics from the mechanics of how earthquakes occur through to the damage that ground shaking,
liquefaction and rockfalls cause to structures and infrastructure and the associated economic costs and social
disruption.
UC senior lecturer Dr Brendon Bradley, who led the development of the qualifications, said the earthquakes have
underlined that in order to reduce earthquake damage and minimise impacts, the civil engineering profession needs
specialised training in earthquake engineering.
``The block-mode courses have already begun attracting significant interest from practising engineers looking to
up-skill as a result of the complex problems that are required to be solved in the aftermath of the earthquakes.’’
UC Vice-Chancellor Dr Rod Carr said the new courses were one of the many ways that UC was able to make a contribution to
the renewal of Christchurch.
``To be feeding back world-class research into post-graduate qualifications promptly is a credit to our staff and clear
evidence of why New Zealand needs to sustain its investment in capability, not just in response to emergencies and
immediate needs but across a wide range of disciplines and over long periods of time,’’ he said.
Pro-Vice-Chancellor of UC’s College of Engineering Professor Jan Evans-Freeman said the new qualifications were ``an
exciting and timely opportunity to build on the significant research capability that our department has in earthquake
engineering in order to offer targeted training for continuing students and industry personnel wishing to develop their
expertise’’.
ENDS